Head-mounted displays (HMDs), near-eye displays (NEDs), and other wearable display systems can be used to present virtual scenery to a user, or to augment real scenery with dynamic information, data, or virtual objects. The virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR) scenery can be three-dimensional (3D) to enhance the experience and to match virtual objects to real objects observed by the user. Eye position and gaze direction, and/or orientation of the user may be tracked in real time, and the displayed imagery may be dynamically adjusted depending on the user's head orientation and gaze direction, to provide a better experience of immersion into a simulated or augmented environment.
Compact display devices are desired for head-mounted display. Because a display of HMD or NED is usually worn on the head of a user, a large, bulky, unbalanced, and/or heavy head-mounted display device would be cumbersome and may be uncomfortable for the user to wear.
Scanning projector displays provide images in angular domain, which can be observed by an eye directly, without an intermediate screen or a display panel. The lack of a screen or a display panel in a scanning projector display enables size and weight reduction of the display. A miniature scanning projector display requires a compact, bright, fast, and energy-efficient light source, as well as a corresponding electronic driver for operating such a light source.